How to Clean a Wood Stove Chimney Flue

Your chimney flue needs to be cleaned to prevent fires.

Your wood stove can be connected to your chimney in order to vent the smoke out of your home. If this is the case, then there will also be a chimney flue to clean and maintain, in addition to your wood stove. The chimney flue is a type of duct that releases the exhaust gases from your stove. This duct is necessary for proper and safe wood stove operation, so you should be diligent and careful while cleaning it.

Things You'll Need

• Flashlight
• Ladder
• Wire chimney brush

Instructions

1. Remove the damper plate if it is blocking your way to the chimney flue. You might have to take out a few pins to remove it.

2. Shine a flashlight into the flue to check for large obstructions. Pull out anything you can see and reach.

3. Disconnect the stovepipe on your wooden stove from the chimney before continuing. Then, cover the opening with a sheet.

4. Use a ladder to access the top of your chimney flue, generally located on your roof.

5. Push a wire chimney brush all the way through the chimney flue. The size brush you choose will need to be able to fit inside your flue. The brush will be attached to a rope with a weight that allows you to easily lower it up and down within the chimney flue to clean out all the soot and debris from the wood burning stove connected to it.

References

• University of Missouri: Cleaning Stovepipes and Chimneys

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish